Campaign Report: Mike Huckabee, Sat. Jan 5

The Huckabee event I went to was not at all the format of the other events I went to. In fact, the event was actually being held for some local charities, so Huck and Chuck (as in Chuck Norris) were just special guests. This means the speech was focused on giving (sure to be inspirational with agreeable content) and there were no questions from the audience.

But I did get to see Huck and Chuck. Thus completing my effort to see all the candidates. Phew!



There were a ton of people at this event. And the folks I was standing next to were die-hard Huckabee supporters. It seemed like most people were, actually.



After some local politicians came up and explained the purpose of the event, the local charities each came up and explained what they do.

Then Huckabee got up. He's very funny.



He started with jokes about how many people were there... Did we all take a shower? We already know the answer! This isn't a political event, we're here to celebrate these charities.

America is a great country and people act like neighbors. This isn't about the government, it's about what people do for their neighbors. We celebrate this spirit. This is a country where people lay down their lives for friends.

Many of us know we'll have food tonight, but millions in America live in hunger and poverty, and America doesn't even compare to the rest of the world. When calamity happens, who shows up the first and the most? The USA. He went to Pakistan after the earthquakes there and saw the devestation. When he met with relief agencies, 75% of them were Americans. Many guardsmen. Our soldiers don't just go where there is war, they also give life. When devestation happens, it's not about what we lose, it's about what we rediscover. In tornadoes in Arkansas, the people lost everything they had, but they were still thankful to have their lives and each other.

This country and our founding fathers believed in Independence. They would live as free citizens or die fighting for that. It is not about what we receive, it's about what we give. The NH motto, "Live free or die" is the summation of this. When John Hancock signed the Declaration of Independence, he didn't have an ego. He signed his name that big because he knew that if the experiment failed he would die, and he wanted them to come for him first. It was not ego, but valor that made him sign his name large.

And now you're being called upon to sign your names on checks. Long before the government gets involved, it's families, and neighbors, and churches that help people. And with these things, you don't need government help. Because before the government gives, it takes away. We'd rather do it ourselves! The handling charges from government are too innefiecient.

And so we celebrate the spriti of this country... volunteering and sacrifice. If everyone gave 10 cents out of their dollars, we wouldn't need government assistance. The government should be protecting us, not providing for us.

So then he goes on to introduce Chuck Norris, and gets funny again. "He could take you all out!"

I won't go into Chuck's part, but he does have this fabulous organization that helps young kids (10-13) get into martial arts to keep them out of trouble and give them discipline. Very cool.

Then Huck comes back. He talks about in other countries people could get into trouble for coming to events like this one. Freedom is an incredible gift. Freedom isn't free for everyone, but it is for us. He tells the story of a teacher who takes the desks out of the classrom. Kids are confused, they call their parents, the parents come and call the media. At the end of the day the kids don't know what they have to do to earn the desks. The teacher has vets bring the desks back. The kids don't have to earn their desks, the people who came before them did it for them. Thanks to the vets.

My take
I can't really judge candidate worthiness after this type of event at all. But Huckabee seems to have the same element of hope and focusing on common goals that I see at Obama events, in the sense that he's not interested in fear-mongering and doom. He's focused on what he sees is the future of America and what the great qualities of our country are. He did still manage to get plenty of message in about small government, etc, even in this "non-political" speech. And he's very funny and personable and finished the event jamming on the guitar with kids.

There were a ton of people at this thing, so even though he's low in the polls, I wonder if he'll have a bump from Iowa.